Systematics

Motacilla magellanica Gmelin, 1789, Systema Naturae 13(1):979. Type locality given as Tierra del Fuego. Gmelin's (19 Gmelin, J.-F. (1789). Systema Naturae, per regna tria Natura: secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. 13th edition. Tome 1, pars II. Impensis George Emanuel Beer, Leipzig, Germany. Close ) description is based on Latham's (20 Latham, J. (1783). A General Synopsis of Birds, Volume 2. Leigh & Sotheby, London, United Kingdom. Close ) "Magellanic Warbler."

Historically, Scytalopus magellanicus included many additional taxa that have since been recognized as separate species, including the closely related Dusky Tapaculo (Scytalopus fuscus) in Chile, as well as Pale-bellied Tapaculo (Scytalopus griseicollis), Neblina Tapaculo (Scytalopus altirostris), Ancash Tapaculo (Scytalopus affinis), Vilcabamba Tapaculo (Scytalopus urubambae), Zimmer's Tapaculo (Scytalopus zimmeri), and Puna Tapaculo (Scytalopus simonsi), among others. The taxon fuscicauda, which is currently considered a subspecies of Merida Tapaculo (Scytalopus meridanus), has also sometimes been placed with Scytalopus magellanicus (15 Riveros, G., and N. Villegas (1994). Análisis taxonómico de las subespecies chilenas de Scytalopus magellanicus (Familia: Rhinocryptidae, Aves) a través de sus cantos. Anales del Museo de Historia Natural de Valparaíso 22:91-101. Close , 21 Whitney, B. M. (1994). A new Scytalopus tapaculo (Rhinocryptidae) from Bolivia, with notes on other Bolivian members of the genus and the magellanicus complex. Wilson Bulletin 106(4):585–614. Close , 22 Krabbe, N., and T. S. Schulenberg (1997). Species limits and natural history of Scytalopus tapaculos (Rhinocryptidae), with descriptions of the Ecuadorian taxa, including three new species. In Studies in Neotropical ornithology honoring Ted Parker (J. V. Remsen, Editor), Ornithological Monographs 47. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, DC, USA. pp. 46–88. Close , 23 Krabbe, N. K., T. S. Schulenberg, P. A. Hosner, K. V. Rosenberg, T. J. Davis, G. H. Rosenberg, D. F. Lane, M. J. Andersen, M. B. Robbins, C. D. Cadena, T. Valqui, J. F. Salter, A. J. Spencer, F. Angulo, and J. Fjeldså (2020). Untangling cryptic diversity in the High Andes: revision of the Scytalopus [magellanicus] complex (Rhinocryptidae) in Peru reveals three new species. Auk 137:1–26. Close ). Many of the splits from a broader Scytalopus magellanicus have been based on vocal differences and genetic differences (e.g., 23 Krabbe, N. K., T. S. Schulenberg, P. A. Hosner, K. V. Rosenberg, T. J. Davis, G. H. Rosenberg, D. F. Lane, M. J. Andersen, M. B. Robbins, C. D. Cadena, T. Valqui, J. F. Salter, A. J. Spencer, F. Angulo, and J. Fjeldså (2020). Untangling cryptic diversity in the High Andes: revision of the Scytalopus [magellanicus] complex (Rhinocryptidae) in Peru reveals three new species. Auk 137:1–26. Close ). Scytalopus magellanicus is currently described to occur from Atacama to Tierra del Fuego with no recognized subspecies, but it is possible that further studies split the populations in the Andes of north-central Chile and recognized additional subspecies or species (8 Jaramillo, A. (2003). A Field Guide to the Birds of Chile Including the Antarctic Peninsula, the Falkland Islands and South Georgia. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Landbeck described the whitish-crowned individuals as another species (Pteroptochos albifrons), but it was later discovered this was merely individual variation (3 Goodall, J. D., A. W. Johnson, and R. A. Philippi-B. (1957). Las Aves de Chile. Volume 2. Platt Establecimientos Gráficos, Buenos Aires, Argentina Close ).

Based on a study published in 2013, Magellanic Tapaculo populations in Cabo de Hornos could represent a new taxon, and the authors suggested it may represent either a new allopatric species or a subspecies. However, more studies are required to confirm this, as this conclusion was based only on color differences in the juvenile plumage (24 Correa, A. (2013). Divergència en el plomatge juvenil del "churrín" (Scytalopus magellanicus Gmelin) de l'illa de Navarino, Xile. Butlletí de la Institució Catalana d'Història Natural 77:165-168. Close ).

Some males that live in forested habitats in the southern part of its distribution can have a white crown or feathers in the forehead, unlike those that inhabit the high Andes. Some authors have suggested that populations with white-crowned individuals represent a separate subspecies (see Systematics History), but more research is required (3 Goodall, J. D., A. W. Johnson, and R. A. Philippi-B. (1957). Las Aves de Chile. Volume 2. Platt Establecimientos Gráficos, Buenos Aires, Argentina Close , 25 Narosky, T., and D. Yzurieta (2010). Birds of Argentina and Uruguay: A Field Guide / Guía para la identificación de las aves de Argentina y Uruguay. Vazquez Mazzini Editores, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Close , 9 Martínez, D., and G. González (2017). Las aves de Chile. Guía de Campo y Breve Historia Natural. Ediciones del Naturalista, Santiago, Chile. Close ). Specimens from the southern extent of the distribution appear to be slightly larger than the those from the south-central portion of its distribution (Malleco to Llanquihue) (2 Hellmayr, C. E. (1932). The birds of Chile. Publications of the Field Museum Natural History, Zoological Series 19:1–472. Close ).

Currently recognized as monotypic (26 Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood (2022). The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2022. Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. Close ). The populations in central high Andes from Chile and Argentina have been described as a possible different subspecies than the populations in southern lowland forests, but more studies are required to confirm this (8 Jaramillo, A. (2003). A Field Guide to the Birds of Chile Including the Antarctic Peninsula, the Falkland Islands and South Georgia. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close , 9 Martínez, D., and G. González (2017). Las aves de Chile. Guía de Campo y Breve Historia Natural. Ediciones del Naturalista, Santiago, Chile. Close , 27 Pearman M., and J. I. Areta (2020). Birds of Argentina and the South-west Atlantic. Bloomsbury, London, UK. Close ). In addition, birds from Cabo de Hornos may represent a distinct taxon, but additional research is also needed to clarify the status of this population (7 Correa, A., D. Rossi, D. Asperó, and O. N. G. Omora (2012). Phenotype differences in the juvenile plumage of Churrin (Scytalopus magellanicus) of Isla Navarino, Chile. 7th International Symposium on Health Informatic and Bioinformatics. HIBIT 2012. Poster 19. 10.13140/2.1.3251.6488. Close ).

Magellanic Tapaculo appears to be sister species with Dusky Tapaculo (Scytalopus fuscus). Together, these two species are part of the Southern Andes clade of Scytalopus tapaculos that includes eight other species distributed from southern Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina. Within this group, Magellanic Tapaculo and Dusky Tapaculo are sister to the rest of the clade (28 Cadena, C. D., A. M. Cuervo, L. N. Céspedes, G. A. Bravo, N. Krabbe, T. S. Schulenberg, G. E. Derryberry, L. F. Silveira, E. P. Derryberry, R. T. Brumfield, and J. Fjeldså (2020). Systematics, biogeography and diversification of Scytalopus tapaculos (Rhinocryptidae), an enigmatic radiation of Neotropical montane birds. Auk 137:1–30. Close ).

This clade is part of the Scytalopus genus, which contains at least 49 species, and is distributed from Costa Rica to Tierra del Fuego; the genus includes the endangered Brasilia Tapaculo (Scytalopus novacapitalis), Boa Nova Tapaculo (Scytalopus gonzagai), Paramillo Tapaculo (Scytalopus canus), Magdalena Tapaculo (Scytalopus rodriguezi), and Ecuadorian Tapaculo (Scytalopus robbinsi). While it is an extremely diverse genus, much of this diversity has only recently come to light through research on genetic diversity, phylogeography, and vocalizations, because most members of the genus all are extremely similar in terms of plumage and morphology (22 Krabbe, N., and T. S. Schulenberg (1997). Species limits and natural history of Scytalopus tapaculos (Rhinocryptidae), with descriptions of the Ecuadorian taxa, including three new species. In Studies in Neotropical ornithology honoring Ted Parker (J. V. Remsen, Editor), Ornithological Monographs 47. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, DC, USA. pp. 46–88. Close , 28 Cadena, C. D., A. M. Cuervo, L. N. Céspedes, G. A. Bravo, N. Krabbe, T. S. Schulenberg, G. E. Derryberry, L. F. Silveira, E. P. Derryberry, R. T. Brumfield, and J. Fjeldså (2020). Systematics, biogeography and diversification of Scytalopus tapaculos (Rhinocryptidae), an enigmatic radiation of Neotropical montane birds. Auk 137:1–30. Close , 29 Krabbe, N. K. (2020). Proposal (855) to South American Classification Committee: Recognize Scytalopus androstictus as a species. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCprop855.htm (accessed 2 October 2021). Close , 30 Krabbe, N. K. (2020). Proposal (858) to South American Classification Committee. A: Rank Scytalopus latrans intermedius as a species. B: call it Utcubamba Tapaculo. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCprop858.htm (accessed 16 August 2021). Close ). Cryptic diversity is still being recognized in this group, so it is possible that there are more species than the ones described at the time of this writing.

Not reported (31 McCarthy, E. M. (2006). Handbook of Avian Hybrids of the World. Oxford University Press, Oxford, United Kingdom. Close ).

Local names include “churrín del sur” (Chile), “Churrín común” (Argentina), "Churrín andino" (Argentina), "Para atrás," "Pa'trás-pa'trás," "Choco" (Chiloé), "Cholchif" (Araucan), “Tiftifken” (Mapuche), "Triftrifken" (Mapuche), "Trureu" (Mapuche), “Tutu” (Yagan), "San José" (Ñuble), and "chercán negro" (32 Gay, C. (1847). Historia Física y Política de Chile. Zoología Tomo I. Museo Historia Natural de Santiago, Santiago, Chile. Close , 33 Rozzi, R. (2004). Implicaciones eticas de narrativas yaganes y mapuches sobre las aves de los bosques templados de Sudamérica austral. Ornitología Neotropical 15(Suppl.):435–444. Close , 7 Correa, A., D. Rossi, D. Asperó, and O. N. G. Omora (2012). Phenotype differences in the juvenile plumage of Churrin (Scytalopus magellanicus) of Isla Navarino, Chile. 7th International Symposium on Health Informatic and Bioinformatics. HIBIT 2012. Poster 19. 10.13140/2.1.3251.6488. Close , 34 Ibarra, J. T., J. Caviedes, and P. Benavides (2020). Winged Voices: Mapuche Ornithology from South American Temperate Forest. Journal of Ethnobiology 40:89-100. Close ).

Scytalopus comes from Greek "skutale" or "skutalon," which means stick or branch, and "pous," which means foot. The species name magellanicus is derived from where it was described, Tierra del Fuego.

None reported.